And the M in Manager stands for Matter. Make a difference.

Our talk story this week started with a deadline many managers share, and our wayfinding to make the best of it brought us to goal setting.

That’s a happenstance I’m pleased with, for goals is the stuff of ‘Imi ola — creating our best possible life.

Love this passage from Robin Sharma in his book, The Greatness Guide:

I know what you’re thinking: “Robin, give me a topic that’s fresh and original and challenging. Why are you writing about goals? We know this stuff. It’s boring!” Few success practices are as important as articulating your most closely held goals and then reviewing them daily. Getting masterful at setting and then considering your goals on a consistent basis is essential to a life of greatness. And yet, guess what? Most people don’t spend more than an hour a year doing this. It’s true: People spend more time planning their summer vacations than they do designing their lives.”

I admit to you that I’ve had my ups and downs with it too. Goal setting is hard, especially the kind of goal setting that Jim Collins explains as BHAGs: Those Big Hairy Audacious Goals you know will cause your life to shift in a way that will change you at your core forever.

Managing with Aloha was the achievement of a BHAG for me, and now, 7 years later, I’m still seeking my next one.

I’ve had much more success in helping my employees and customers set their goals, guiding them and supporting them, than I’ve had with setting goals of my own.

However I keep trying, for the evidence is crystal clear to me:

I feel alive, attentive and accomplished when I’m focused on a goal, even a small one.

When I ‘take a break’ from goal setting I’m fully aware that I’m stalling. I feel directionless and unsatisfied about a lot of things, not just the lack of a new goal.

When I help others with their goals, I’m working on my own how-to-achieve-them mastery too: It all counts.

When I recognize my next BHAG cresting over the horizon, I’ll be ready for it.

So please. Don’t succumb to giving lip service to goal setting.

If you think it’s boring, do what you must to light your fire with it again. Get it to work its magic for you personally, and as an Alaka‘i Manager who matters in the lives of other people.

Here’s more help from Joshua Becker: How to Fulfill Dreams

“Setting your goals is a bold play for your best life. Setting your goals is an act of heroism because you are reaching for the potential that has been invested in you.”
— Robin Sharma